Have miserable, mad, mistaking eyes.
O sweet Revenge, now do I come to thee:
And, if one arm's embracement will content thee,
I will embrace thee in it by and by.
[exit Titus, from above.
Tam. This closing with him fits his lunacy:
Whate'er I forge, to feed his brain-sick fits,
Do you uphold and maintain in your speeches.
For now he firmly takes me for Revenge,
And, being credulous in this mad thought,
I'll make him send for Lucius, his son;
And, whilst I at banquet hold him sure,
I'll find some cunning practice out of hand,
To scatter and disperse the giddy Goths,
Or, at the least, make them his enemies.
See, here he comes, and I must ply my theme.
Enter Titus.
Tit. Long have I been forlorn, and all for thee:
Welcome, dread fury, to my woful house;
Rapine, and Murder, you are welcome too :-
How like the empress and her sons you are!
Well had you fitted, had you but a Moor:-
Could not all hell afford you such a devil?—
For, well I wot, the empress never wags,
But in her company there is a Moor:
And, would you represent our queen aright,
It were convenient you had such a devil:
But welcome, as you are. What shall we do?
Tam. What would'st thou have us do, Andronicus?
Dem. Show me a murderer, I'll deal with him.
Chi. Show me a villain, that hath done a rape,
And I am sent to be reveng'd on him.
Bid him encamp his soldiers where they are:
Tell him, the emperor and the empress too
Feast at my house: and he shall feast with them,
This do thou for my love; and so let him,
As he regards his aged father's life.
Mar. This will I do, and soon return again. [exit.
Tam. Now will I hence about thy business.
And take my ministers along with me.
Tit. Nay, nay, let Rape and Murder stay with
Or else I'll call my brother back again,
[me;
And cleave to no revenge but Lucius.
Tam. What say you, boys? will you abide with
Whiles I go tell my lord the emperor, [him,
How I have govern'd our determin'd jest?
Yield to his humour, smooth and speak him fair,
[aside
And tarry with him, till I come again.
Tit. I know them all, though they suppose me mad;
And will o'er-reach them in their own devices,
A pair of cursed hell-hounds, and their dam. [aside.
Dem. Madam, depart at pleasure, leave us here.
Tam. Farewell, Andronicus: Revenge now goes
To lay a complot to betray thy foes. [exit Tamora.
Tit. I know, thou dost; and, sweet Revenge
farewell.
Chi. Tell us, old man, how shall we be employ'd?
Tit. Tut, I have work enough for you to do.-
Publius, come hither, Caius, and Valentine!
Enter Publius and others.
Pub. What's your will?
Tit. Know you these two?
Pub. The empress' sons,
Tam. Show me a thousand, that have done theo I take them, Chiron and Demetrius.
And I will be reveng'd on them all.
Tit. Fie, Publius, fie! thou art too much deceiv'd;
Tit. Look round about the wicked streets of The one is Murder, Rape is the other's name :
Rome;
And when thou find'st a man that's like thyself,
Good Murder, stab him; he's a murderer.-
Go thou with him: and, when it is thy hap
To find another that is like to thee,
Good Rapine, stab him; he is a ravisher.—
Go thou with them; and in the emperor's court
There is a queen, attended by a Moor;
Well may'st thou know her by thy own proportion,
For up and down she doth resemble thee;
I pray thee, do on them some violent death,
They have been violent to me and mine.
Tam. Well hast thou lesson'd us; this shall we
But would it please thee, good Andronicus, [do.
To send for Lucius, thy thrice valiant son,
Who leads towards Rome a band of warlike Goths,
And bid him come and banquet at thy house :
When he is here, even at thy solemn feast,
I will bring in the empress, and her sons,
The emperor himself, and all thy foes;
And at thy mercy shall they stoop and kneel,
And on them shalt thou ease thy angry heart.
What says Andronicus to this device?
And therefore bind them, gentle Publius:
Caius, and Valentine, lay hands on them:
Oft have you heard me wish for such an hour,
And now I find it; therefore bind them sure;
And stop their mouths, if they begin to cry.
[exit Titus.-Publius, &c. lay hold on Chiron
and Demetrius.
Chi. Villains, forbear; we are the empress' sous.
Pub. And therefore do we what we are com
Stop close their mouths, let them not speak a word:
Is he sure bound? look, that you bind them fast.
Re-enter Titus Andronicus, with Lavinia; she
bearing a bason, and he a knife.
Tit. Come, come, Lavinia; look, thy foes are
bound;
Sirs, stop their mouths, let them not speak to me;
But let them hear what fearful words I utter.-
O villains, Chiron and Demetrius! [with mud;
Here stands the spring whom you have stain'd
This goodly summer with your winter mix'd.
You kill'd her husband; and, for that vile fault,
Two of her brothers were condemn'd to death:
Tit. Marcus, my brother!-'tis sad Titus calls. My hand cut off, and made a merry jest :
Go, gentle Marcus, to thy nephew Lucius:
Thou shalt inquire him out among the Goths:
Bid him repair to me, and bring with him
Some of the chiefest princes of the Goths;
Both her sweet hands, her tongue, and that, more
Than hands or tongue, her spotless chastity, [dear
Inhuman traitors, you constrain'd and forc'd.
What would you say, if I should let you speak?
Villains, for shame you could not beg for grace.
Hark, wretches, how I mean to martyr you.
This one hand yet is left to cut your throats;
Whilst that Lavinia 'tween her stumps doth hold
The bason, that receives your guilty blood.
You know, your mother means to feast with me,
And calls herself, Revenge, and thinks me mad.—
Hark, villains; I will grind your bones to dust,
And with your blood and it, I'll make a paste;
And of the paste a coffin I will rear,
And make two pasties of your shameful heads;
And bid that strumpet, your unhallow'd dam,
Like to the earth, swallow her own increase.
This is the feast that I have bid her to,
And this the banquet she shall surfeit on;
For worse than Philomel you us'd my daughter,
And worse than Progne I will be reveng'd:
And now prepare your throats.-Lavinia, come,
The cuts their throats.
Receive the blood: and, when that they are dead,
Let me go grind their bones to powder small,
And with this hateful liquor temper it;
And in that paste let their vile heads be bak'd.
Come, come, be every one officious
To make this banquet; which I wish may prove
More stern and bloody than the Centaurs' feast.
So, now bring them in, for I will play the cook,
And see them ready 'gainst their mother comes.
[exeunt, bearing the dead bodies.
SCENE III. THE SAME. A PAVILION, TABLES, &c.
Enter Lucius, Marcus, and Goths, with Aaron,
prisoner.
Luc. Uncle Marcus, since 'tis my father's mind, That I repair to Rome, I am content.
1 Goth. And ours, with thine, befall what fortune will.
[Moor, Luc. Good uncle, take you in this barbarous This ravenous tiger, this accursed devil: Let him receive no sustenance, fetter him, Till he be brought unto the empress' face For testimony of her foul proceedings: And see the ambush of our friends be strong: I fear the emperor means no good to us.
Aar. Some devil whisper curses in mine ear, And prompt me, that my tongue may utter forth The venomous malice of my swelling heart!
Luc. Away, inhuman dog! unhallow'd slave!— Sirs, help our uncle to convey him.
Tit. Welcome, my gracious lord: welcony, dread queen;
Welcome, ye warlike Goths; welcome, Lucius; And welcome, all: although the cheer be poor "Twill fill your stomachs; please you eat of it.
Sat. Why art thou thus attir'd, Andronicus? Tit. Because I would be sure to have all well, To entertain your highness, and your empress
Tam. We are beholden to you, good Andronicus. Tit. An if your highness knew my heart, you My lord the emperor, resolve me this; [were. Was it well done of rash Virginius,
To slay his daughter with his own right hand, Because she was enforc'd, stain'd, and deflower'd? Sat. It was, Andronicus.
Tit. Your reason, mighty lord?
Sat. Because the girl should not survive he And by her presence still renew his sorrows.
Tit. A reason mighty, strong, and effectual; A pattern, precedent, and lively warrant, For me, most wretched, to perform the like:Die, die, Lavinia, and thy shame with thee;
And, with thy shame, thy father's sorrow die! Sat. What hast thou done, unnatural, and unkind? [me blind.
Tit. Kill'd her, for whom my tears have made I am as woful as Virginius was: And have a thousand times more cause than he To do this outrage;—and it is now done. Sat. What, was she ravish'd? tell, who did the [highness, feed!
Tit. Will't please you eat; will't please your Tam. Why hast thou slain thine only daughter Tit. Not I; 'twas Chiron and Demetrius: [thus? They ravish'd her, and cut away her tongue, And they, 'twas they, that did her all this wrong. Sat. Go, fetch them hither to us presently. Tit. Why, there they are both, bak'd in that Whereof their mother daintily hath fed, [pye; Eating the flesh that she herself hath bred. 'Tis true, 'tis true; witness my knife's sharp point. [killing Tamora.
Sat. Die, frantic wretch, for this accursed deed.
[killing Titus. Luc. Can the son's eye behold his father bleed? There's meed for meed, death for a deadly deed.
{exeunt Goths, with Aaron. Flourish. | [kills Saturnimus. The trumpets show the emperor is at hand. Enter Saturninus and Tamora, with Tribunes,
A great tumult. The people in confusion disperse. Marcus, Lucius, and their partisans, ascend the steps before Titus' house. Mar. You sad-fac'd men, people and sons of
Sat. What, hath the firmament more suns than By uproar sever'd, like a flight of fowl
Scatter'd by winds and high tempestuous gusts,
O, let me teach you how to knit again
This scatter'd corn into one mutual sheaf,
These broken limbs again into one body.
Sen. Lest Rome herself be bane unto herself;
And she, whom mighty kingdoms court'sy to,
Like a forlorn and desperate cast-away,
Do shameful execution on herself.
But if my frosty signs and chaps of age,
Grave witnesses of true experience,
Cannot induce you to attend my words,--
Speak, Rome's dear friend; [to Lucius] na erst
When with his solemn tongue he did discourse,
To love-sick Dido's sad attending ear,
The story of that baleful burning night,
When subtle Greeks surpris'd king Priam's Troy ;
Tell us, what Sinon hath bewitch'd our ears,
Or who hath brought the fatal engine in,
That gives our Troy, our Rome, the civil wound.-
My heart is not compact of flint, nor steel;
Nor can I utter all our bitter grief,
But floods of tears will drown my oratory,
And break my very utterance; even i'the time
When it should move you to attend me most,
Lending your kind commiseration :
Here is a captain, let him tell the tale; [speak.
Your hearts will throb and weep to hear him
Luc. Then, noble auditory, be it known to you,
That cursed Chiron and Demetrius
Were they that murdered our emperor's brother;
And they it were that ravished our sister:
For their fell faults our brothers were beheaded;
Our father's tears despis'd; and basely cozen'd
Of that true hand, that fought Rome's quarrel out,
And sent her enemies unto the grave.
Lastly, myself unkindly banished,
The gates shut on me, and turn'd weeping out,
To beg relief among Rome's enemies;
Who drown'd their enmity in my true tears,
And op'd their arms to embrace me as a friend:
And I am the turn'd-forth, be it known to you,
That have preserv'd her welfare in my blood;
And from her bosom took the enemy's point,
Sheathing the steel in my advent'rous body.
Alas! you know, I am no vauuter, I;
My scars can witness, dumb although they are,
That my report is just, and full of truth.
But, soft; methinks, I do digress too much,
Citing my worthless praise; O, pardon me;
For when no friends are by, men praise themselves.
Mar. Now is my turn to speak; behold this child,
[pointing to the child in the arms of an Attendant.
Of this was Tamora delivered;
The issue of an irreligious Moor,
Chief architect and plotter of these woes;
The villain is alive in Titus' house,
Damn'd as he is, to witness this is true.
Now judge, what cause had Titus to revenge
These wrongs, unspeakable, past patience,
Or more than any living man could bear. [mans?
Now you have heard the truth, what say you, Ro-
Have we done aught amiss? Show us wherein,
And from the place where you behold us now,
The poor remainder of Andronici
Will, hand in hand, all headlong cast us down,
And on the ragged stones beat forth our brains,
And make a mutual closure of our house.
speak, Romans, speak; and, if you say, we shall,
Lo, hand in hand, Lucius and I will fall.
Emil. Come, come, thou reverend man of Rome,
And bring our emperor gently in thy hand,
Lucius our emperor; for, well I know,
The common voice do cry, it shall be so.
Rom. [several speak.] Lucius, all hail; Rome's
royal emperor !
Lucius, &c. descend.
Mar. Go, go into old Titus' sorrowful house;
[to an Attendant.
And hither hale that misbelieving Moor,
To be adjudged some direful slaughtering death, As punishment for his most wicked life.
Rom. [several speak.] Lucius, all hail; Rome's
Luc. Thanks, gentle Romans; may I govern so, To heal Rome's harms; and wipe away her woe! But, gentle people, give me aim awhile,— For nature puts me to a heavy task:Stand all aloof:-but, uncle, draw you near To shed obsequious tears upon this trunk :-.. O, take this warm kiss on thy pale cold lips, [kisses Titus. These sorrowful drops upon thy blood-stain'd fure, The last true duties of thy noble son!
Mar. Tear for tear, and loving kiss for kiss, Thy brother Marcus tenders on thy lips: O, were the sum of these that I should pay Countless and infinite, yet would I pay them! Luc. Come hither, boy; come, come, and learn of us [well: To melt in showers: thy grandsire lov'd thee Many a time he danc'd thee on his knee, Sung thee asleep, his loving breast thy pillow; Many a matter hath he told to thee, Meet, and agreeing with thine infancy; In that respect then, like a loving child, Shed yet some small drops from thy tender spring, Because kind nature doth require it so: Friends should associate friends in grief and woe: Bid him farewell; commit him to the grave; Do him that kindness, and take leave of him. Boy. O grandsire, grandsire! even with all my Would I were dead, so you did live again! [heart O lord, I cannot speak to him for weeping; My tears will choke me, if I ope my mouth. Enter Attendants, with Aaron.
1 Rom. You sad Andronici, have done with Give sentence on this execrable wretch, [woes; That hath been breeder of these dire events. Luc. Set him breast-deep in earth, and famish him;
There let him stand, and rave and cry for food:
If any one relieves or pities him,
For the offence he dies. This is our doom:
Some stay, to see him fasten'd in the earth.
Aar. O, why should wrath be mute, and fury
I am no baby, I, that, with base prayers, [dumb?
I should repent the evils I have done;
Ten thousand, worse than ever yet I did,
Would I perform, if I might have my will;
If one good deed in all my life I did,
I do repent it from my very soul.
Luc. Some loving friends convey the emperor
And give him burial in his father's grave:
My father, and Lavinia, shall forthwith
Be closed in our household's monument.
As for that heinous tiger, Tamora,
No funeral rite, nor man in mournful weeds,
No mournful bell shall ring her burial;
But throw her forth to beasts, and birds of prey:
Her life was beast-like, and devoid of pity;
And, being so, shall have like want of pity.
See justice done on Aaron, that damn'd Moor,
From whom our heavy haps had their beginning.
Then, afterwards, to order well the state;
That like events may ne'er it ruinate. ¦ereunt.
Petruchio, a Gentleman of Verona, a suitor to Katharina.
Gremio,
Pedant, an old fellow, set up to personate Vincentio.
Katharina, the Shrew, Daughters to Baptista.
Tailor, Haberdasher, and Servants attending on Bapt and Petruchio.
SCENE.-Sometimes in Padua; and sometimes in Petruchio's house in the country.
SCENE 1. BEFORE AN ALE-HOUSE ON A HEATH.
Enter Hostess and Sly.
Sly. I'LL pheese you, in faith.
Host. A pair of stocks, you rogue!
Sly. Y'are a baggage; the Slies are no rogues :
Look in the chronicles, we came in with Richard
Conqueror. Therefore, paucas pallabris; let the
world slide: Sessa!
And brave attendants near him when he wakes,
Would not the beggar then forget himself?
1 Hun. Believe me, lord, I think he cannot.
choose.
[he wak'd.
2 Hun. It would seem strange unto him when
Lord. Even as a flattering dream, or worthless
Then take him up, and manage well the jest:
Host. You will not pay for the glasses you have Carry him gently to my fairest chamber, burst?
Sly. No, not a denier: Go by, says Jeronimy;
Go to thy cold bed, and warın thee.
Host. I know my remedy, I must go fetch the third-borough. [exit. Sly. Third, or fourth, or fifth borough, I'll answer him by law; I'll not budge an inch, boy; let him come, and kindly. [lies down on the ground and falls asleep. Wind horns. Enter a Lord from hunting, with Huntsmen and Servants.
Lord. Huntsman, I charge thee, tender well
my hounds:
Brach Merriman,-the poor cur is emboss'd
And couple Clowder with the deep mouth'd brach.
Saw'st thou not, boy, how Silver made it good
At the hedge corner, in the coldest fault?
I would not lose the dog for twenty pound.
1 Hun. Why, Belman is as good as he, my lord;
He cried upon it at the merest loss,
And twice to-day pick'd out the dullest scent:
Trust me, I take him for the better dog.
Lord. Thou art a fool; if Echo were as fleet,
I would esteem him worth a dozen such.
But sup them well, and look unto them all;
To-morrow I intend to hunt again.
1 Hun. I will, my lord.
Lord. What's here? one dead, or drunk? See,
doth he breathe? [warm'd with ale,
2 Hun. He breathes, my lord: Were he not
This were a bed but cold to sleep so soundly. [lies!
Lord. O monstrous beast! how like a swine he
Grim death, how foul and loathsome is thine image!
Sirs, I will practise on this drunken man.
What think you, if he were convey'd to bed, [ers,
Wrapp'd in sweet clothes, rings put upon his fing-
A most delicious banquet by his bed,
And hang it round with all my wanton pictures:
Balm his foul head with warm distilled waters,
And burn sweet wood to make the lodging sweet!
Procure me music ready when he wakes,
To make a dulcet and a heavenly sound ·
And if he chance to speak, be ready straight,
And, with a low submissive reverence,
Say,-what is it your honour will command
Let one attend him with a silver basin,
Full of rose-water, and bestrew'd with flowers;
Another bear the ewer, the third a diaper, [hands?
And say,—Will't please your lordship cool your
Some one be ready with a costly suit,
And ask him what apparel he will wear;
Another tell him of his hounds and horse,
And that his lady mourns at his disease:
Persuade him that he hath been a lunatic;
And when he says he is—, say, that he dreams,
For he is nothing but a mighty lord.
This do, and do it kindly, gentle sirs;
It will be pastime passing excellent,
If it be husbanded with modesty.
1 Hun. My lord, I warrant you, we'll play our
As he shall think, by our true diligence,
He is no less than what we say he is.
Lord. Take him up gently, and to bed with him
And each one to his office when he wakes-
[some bear out Sly; a trumpet sounds.
Sirrah, go see what trumpet 'tis that sounds:
[exit Servant,
Belike, some noble gentleman: that means,
Travelling some journey, to repose him here.-
Re-enter a Servant.
How now? who is it?
Serv. An it please your honour,
Players, that offer service to your lordship.
Lord. Bid them come near:
Now, fellows, you are welcome. ] Play. We thank your honour. Lord. Do you intend to stay with me to-night? 2 Play. So please your lordship to accept our duty. [member,
Lord. With all my heart.-This fellow I reSince once he play'd a farmer's eldest son ;T'was where you woo'd the gentlewoman so well: I have forgot your name; but, sure, that part Was aptly fitted, and naturally perform❜d. [means. 1 Play. I think, 'twas Soto that your honour Lord. 'Tis very true; thou did'st it excellent. Well, you are come to me in happy time: The rather for I have some sport in hand, Wherein your cunning can assist me much. There is a lord will hear you play to-night: But I am doubtful of your modesties; Lest, over-eying of his odd behaviour, (For yet his honour never heard a play), You break into some merry passion, And so offend him; for, I tell you, sirs, If you should smile, he grows impatient. [selves, 1 Play. Fear not, my lord; we can contain ourWere he the veriest antic in the world.
Lord. Go, sirrah, take them to the buttery,
And give them friendly welcome every one:
Let them want nothing that my house affords.—
"exeunt Servant and Players.
Sirrah, go you to Bartholomew, my page, [to a Se
And see him dress'd in all suits like a lady:
That done, conduct him to the drunkard's chamber,
And call him-madam, do him obeisance.
Tell him from me (as he will win my love),
He bear himself with honourable action,
Such as he hath observ'd in noble ladies
Unto their lords, by them accomplished:
Such duty to the drunkard let him do,
With soft low tongue, and lowly courtesy;
And say,-What is't your honour will command,
Wherein your lady, and your humble wife,
May show her duty, and make known her love?
And then-with kind embracements, tempting
kisses,
And with declining head into his bosom,-
Bid him shed tears, as being overjoy'd
To see her noble lord restor❜d to health,
Who, for twice seven years, hath esteem'd him
No better than a poor and loathsome beggar:
And if the boy have not a woman's gift,
To rain a shower of commanded tears,
An onion will do well for such a shift;
Which in a napkin being close convey'd,
Shall in despite enforce a watery eye.
See this despatch'd with all the haste thou canst;
Anon I'll give thee more instructions.-[ex. Ser.
I know, the boy will well usurp the grace,
Voice, gait, and action of a gentlewoman :
I long to hear him call the drunkard, husband; And how my men will stay themselves from laughter,
When they do homage to this simple peasant.
I'll in to counsel them; haply, my presence
May well abate the over-merry spleen,
Which otherwise would grow into extremes.
[exeun!.
SCENE II. A BEDCHAMBER IN THE LORD'S HOUSE.
Sly is discovered in a rich night-gown, with Attendants; some with apparel, others with basin, ewer, and other appurtenances. Enter Lord, dressed like a Servant.
Sly. For God's sake, a pot of small ale, 1 Serv. Will't please your lordship drink a cup [conserves?
2 Serv. Will't please your honour taste of these 3 Serv. What raiment will your honour wear to-day?
Sly. I am Christophero Sly; call not mehonour, nor lordship; I never drank sack in my life; and if you give me any conserves, give me conserves of beef: Ne'er ask me what raiment I'll wear; for I have no more doublets than backs, no more stockings than legs, nor no more shoes than feet; nay, sometimes, more feet than shoes, or such shoes as my toes look through the overleather.
Lord. Heaven cease this idle humour in your
honour!
O, that a mighty man, of such descent,
Of such possessions, and so high esteem,
Should be infused with so foul a spirit.
Sly. What, would you make me mad? Am not I Christopher Sly, old Sly's son of Burton heath; by birth a pedlar, by education a card-maker, by transmutation a bear-herd, and now by present profession a tinker? Ask Marian Hacket, the fat ale-wife of Wincot, if she know me not; if she say I am not fourteen pence on the score for sheer ale, score me up for the lyingest knave in Christendom. What, I am not bestraught, Here's
1 Serv. O, this it is, that makes your lady mourn. 2 Serv. O, this it is, that makes your servants [your house,
droop. Lord. Hence comes it that your kindred shun As beaten hence by your strange lunacy. O, noble lord, bethink thee of thy birth; Call home thy ancient thoughts from banishment, And banish hence these abject lowly dreams: Look how thy servants do attend on thee, Each in his office ready at thy beck. Wilt thou have music? hark! Apollo plays, [music. And twenty caged nightingales do sing : Or wilt thou sleep? we'll have thee to a couch, Softer and sweeter than the lustful bed On purpose trimm'd up for Semiramis. Say, thou wilt walk; we will bestrew the ground: Or wilt thou ride? thy horses shall be trapp'd, Their harness studded all with gold and pearl. Dost thou love hawking? thou hast hawks will soar Above the morning lark: Or wilt thou hunt? Thy hounds shall make the welkin answer then, And fetch shrill echoes from the hollow earth.
1 Serv. Say, thou wilt course; thy greyhounds are as swift
As breathed stags, ay, fleeter than the roe.
2 Serv. Dost thou love pictures? we will fetch Adonis, painted by a running brook: [thee straight And Cytherea all in sedges hid;
Which seem to move and wanton with her breath, Even as the waving sedges play with wind.
Lord. We'll show thee, lo, as she was a maid :
|